The Stag and the Doe
by DontFeedTheDragon
Summary: She, the girl with silky red hair and electric green eyes, had a great personality. Her name was Lily Evans. He, the boy with the ruffled black hair and sparkling hazel eyes, was the greatest boy at Hogwarts. His name was James Potter. Together, they were James and Lily. Freckles and Glasses, Jamie and Lils, Brunette and Ginger. The Stag and the Doe.
1. Prologue

**new story :)**

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PROLOUGE-

She, the girl with silky red hair and electric green eyes, had a great personality. She was smart, caring, kind, funny, and pretty. Her name was Lily Evans.

He, the boy with the ruffled black hair and sparkling hazel eyes, was the greatest boy at Hogwarts. Funny, charming, witty, and friendly, his name was James Potter.

At first, these two characters loathed each other. As time went on, he began to care for her more and more, though she merely pushed him away. She told herself and everyone else she didn't care for him back, but later on, she wondered if that was at all true and if she really did. She thinks she did. The important thing to both of them, though, was that now they did care for each other.

One might ask how this came to be during the years? Well I have taken it upon myself to share that story, year by year, age eleven to seventeen. I will share one scene that happened between them per year- and after that, many more, perhaps even what happened in between those scenes.

Aside from that and back to our stars, Potter and Evans. Jamie and Lils. Prongs and Lily Flower. Brunette and Ginger, Glasses and Freckles, Pureblood and Muggleborn.

James and Lily. The Stag and the Doe.

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**So again, the story to begin with will be a series of seven oneshots about James and Lily- one for each year at Hogwarts. After that, i will be posting A LOT of oneshots about them _during_ their time at Hogwarts, but in no particular order. The first seven will all be light and fluffy, but after they could be dramatic, sad, funny- anything.**

**I'm also open to requests for those oneshots for afterwards :)**

**Spare me a review?(:**


	2. Year One: The Hogwarts Express

**so here's chapter one! i updated in a day! okay, usually i will not update daily, i was just too eager so i decided to give you chapter one so you could see what you're in for. Sorry that this is a bit short- trust me, it's the shortest chapter though!**

**So remember, its going year by year (for now), which means this is set in James and Lily's first year, when they are eleven years old.**

**enjoy!**

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James Potter walked, searching for a place to sit in the overcrowded train He looked around, hoping to see an empty compartment. Not even five minutes ago he had been with his new friends Sirius and Remus, laughing and wondering which house they would get sorted into, Continuing walking down the hall at a steady pace, he heard a familiar laughter. Turning his head, he saw Sirius and Remus beckoning him to sit down. He had just taken his seat when a bold redheaded girl walked in and sat towards the window, tears rolling silently down her freckled face, indifferent to the staring faces of the boys

James had noticed, of course, but decided she could manage on her own. He didn't want a bad reputation of a softie in front of his new friends, so he just let her be. A greasy black haired boy walked in and started arguing with the now-sobbing redhead. The greasy guy turned and walked out of the compartment, and the scrambled out of her seat and followed closely behind.

This, of course, was of no concern to James, who had been taught to mind his own business. He ignored the rule, of course- he was much too curious for his own good. And yet he stayed, talking with his friends, when Sirius had to go to the loo and Remus decided to go put on his robes.

So James left too, in search of a new companion. And yet again he walked down the train hallway, peering into the full compartments.

He even once stumbled along an arguing pair of sixth years. As he had passed them, one in a yellow tie, who must be from Hufflepuff, called out to him.

"Oi!" he had said, motioning to James. "C'mere!"

James obliged, curious as usual.

"You are going to be a Hufflepuff, aren't ya? Of course, you want to be part of the winning house!" said the boy.

The girl next to him, in a blue tie for Ravenclaw, did not seen pleased with this.

"Let the poor kid go. Plus, you _know_ Ravenclaw's the best, and the smartest!" she added.

James opened his mouth to counter and say he was aiming for Gryffindor, where the rest of his family had been, when he was interrupted by the Hufflepuff.

"No way! How could you be proud to be a Ravenclaw? _Hufflepuffs_ are the ones who should be proud of their House!"

And that comment started another round of arguing from the crazy students, so James quietly slipped out of their compartment and wandered away. After that experience, all James wanted was an empty compartment.

Unfortunatley for him, he could not find one completely empty, the closest he could get was with only one person in it- the redhaired girl he saw crying in his former compartment.

Slightly unwilling, he slid the door open and took the seat across from her.

"Hi," he said unsurely. He did not want her to get upset and cry again.

"Hi," she replied, and she actually looked and him and smiled_. She has a nice smile_, James thought. At his age, he pranked girls rather than complimented them, but this girl's smile was very pretty.

"Watcha doin in here all alone, Freckles?" James asked. He had a bit of a habit for making up nicknames for people.

"What are you doing without your posse, Glasses?" retorted the girl. James laughed, and so did she- but her laugh was more the sound of a tinkling bell than a chuckle like his.

"Good question. And the answer to that is, one had to empty and the other had to change, so here I am," explained James.

"Fair enough. Are you a pure blood?" asked Freckles. Sev had told her all about the different types of Wizard bloods.

"Yup. Whole family's been in Gryffindor, I expect I'll be there too." Yes, Sev had also told her about the Houses and how many people end up where their families were. The redhead had no idea where she would go. "And you?"

"Muggleborn," she stated. "First in my family to be a witch."

"Well congrats," said James, nodding. "Do you want me to tell you about Hogwarts? See, there are four-"

"I already know," cut in Freckles. "Severus told me a few weeks ago."

"Severus? Old Snivelly from the last compartment?"

"Yes, that's the one."

"Oh. All right."

They sat in silence for a while longer, until a loud screeching sound filled the air and the train stopped moving. They were at Hogwarts finally.

"We're here!" squealed the girl, jumping up.

"Easy there, Freckles." She glared at James.

"Well," she said rather stiffly. "I suppose I'll be seeing you around then."

"Yup," said James, already out of the compartment. "Bye now."

He was halfway down the hallway when he heard a yell.

"Glasses! Wait!"

He turned around slowly, only to see the ginger, Freckles, standing outside the door.

"Yeah?" he asked.

"Well, what's your name? You never told me," she said.

"James. James Potter. And yours, my lady?" He added in a mock-considerate tone.

She turned back into the compartment to get her stuff and called over her shoulder.

"Lily Evans."


	3. Year Two: Courtyard Duel

**Hello, hello! Or as Tonks would say, 'wotcher' ;)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, Lily Evans, James Potter, or any rights to these stories. **

**Quick Authors Note: So, new chapter. Remember, it's going year by year, so since this is chapter 2, its Year Two at Hogwarts, and James and Lily are twelve. I have a little bit more to say, but i'll put it at the end, SO PLEASE READ IT WHEN YOU ARE DONE :) enjoy!**

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Lily Evans knew what was good for her, and what was not. For example, she knew that avoiding James Potter was good for her, and, well, that becoming friends with him wasn't. She knew this because James Potter was the most arrogant, cocky, misbehaving twelve year old boy on the planet.

Well, in her opinion, at least. To a lot of other people, James Potter was a legend. All her friends were crazy about him, and Lily simply could not understand why. Sure, there had been that one moment on the train last year when he was nice, but apart from that, she didnt think she ever saw him to anything besides prank people.

And pranking people was not by any means something Lily wanted to get involved in. She was here at Hogwarts to become a successful witch, not play practical jokes. Of course there were those times when her and Marlene and maybe Alice would do something silly to the other girls in their dorm, like put their hands in warm water while they were asleep, but everyone needs to have fun sometimes. Just not _all_ the time. Not in every class, every second of every hour of every day.

Lily knew she couldn't be involved with James Potter, or even Sirius Black, even though being involved with them is the only thing other girls wanted to do. She did not mind Remus Lupin of course- in fact, they were quite almost friends, and both were nearly sure to become prefects together in their fifth year.

But it was not Remus she minded. It was James. And that's why now, when James and Sirius waked past her in the Hogwarts court yard, she kept her eyes glued to her book, not looking up or even acknowledging that she knew they had stopped and were standing a few feet away from her.

Finally, she gave in and looked up from her book, which she was not really reading at all. "What?" she glared at the boys.

"Ooh James, looks like Evans is still mad about what we did on Wednesday," Sirius said with mock terror.

But as a matter of fact, Lily was in fact upset, because the Marauders had put Sorcer Stelthrop's Sticky Super Glue into all the girls' hairbrushes and toothbrushes. Usually, Lily might let this thing go, perhaps even laugh about it after a few hours, but not this time. This time was the last straw, because after being the victim of their jokes- along with the rest of the school- for the past year and a half, she had told them to stop. They told her they would. They didn't.

"Why yes, Black, I'm glad you lowered your head down to Earth for a few moments to realize that I am indeed mad," retorted Lily.

"Well, maybe you ought to focus a little less on your anger and a little more on your priorities, because your book is upside down, Evans," said James smoothly, and sure enough, her book was definetley not at a readable angle. She looked up, trying not to blush, only to see James wearing his easy going smile. Most girls found that smile attractive- even Lily did too, sometimes, because it was pretty cute- but now it just made her even more annoyed.

"Watch it, Potter, or my next priority could very well be hexing you, and you can bet I'd put all my focus and anger into that," said Lily, quirking her eyebrow in that girlish way only Lily did. Whereas James had no idea his smile could attract Lily, Lily was oblivious to the fact that sometimes James Potter thought she was cute. Not pretty, no, James Potter would _never_ fall for Lily Evans!- no, just cute.

Sirius snorted. "Listen, Evans, I know you're mad at us and all, but when you try to be intimidating it's freaking HILARIOUS," he chuckled. Lily might seem like a calm, silly girl on the outside, with her silky red hair and big green eyes, but she could have a mood change faster than Merlin could Apparate. Most of the time, she was very peaceful. Sirius's last comment, though, is what set her off.

Without thinking what she was doing, she abruptly stood up. Before either of the boys knew what hit them, Lily had already shouted "Avis!", and birds were shooting out of the end of her wand and towards James and Sirius's faces.

By the time the boys fought them off, they were panting and flushed, and Lily was standing with her hands on her hips, smirking.

"I have to say, Evans, that wasn't so bad," James said. "The thing is, though, this is better. Furnunculus!"

Lily's face burst out into boils. A lot quicker than the boys with the birds, Lily did the countercurse and her face was smooth again. Her mind wasn't though. She was furious, and her mind was racing with spells she could use against them.

"Flipendo!" is what she already came up with, but just as she shouted that to her wand, Sirius castes a shield in front of him and James, and they were safe. Sirius removed the shield, laughing with James.

"Good one," James chuckled with Sirius. lily saw their distraction as a perfect opportunity, so she took it.

"Incarcerous!" is what she caster at Sirius, causing ropes to completely bind him, and she hit James with "Locomotor Mortis!", making his kegs totally immobile, then used the rope spell to tie his hands together- just so he couldnt separate them, not paralyze them all together. She would have hit them both with the ropes, but it was after all Sirius who was taunting her more, so she had slight mercy on James and left his arms mostly free, so he could at least untie his friend and Sirius would fix James' legs.

Satisfied with hereself, Lily practically skipped up to where they were both lying on the ground.

"Who can't be intimidating, Sirius?" she smirked. Sirius stuck his tongue out, a silly gesture causing Lily to laugh. She wasn't being mean, oh no- Lily Evans was never mean. She was simply giving them what they deserved, all the while proving a girl could easily beat them.

"Evans," James said. "Please let us go. Or at least me," he added, causing Sirius to call out in protest.

"No," Lily replied simply. "You said you could beat me in a duel, so I think you should be smart enough to figure out how to undo these simple curses." She reached down and ruffed up James' and Sirius' hair, knowing full well neither of them could fix it, because she slid James' wand out of his reach.

She gave them both a large smile. "Bye, now." And she left.

"Blimey she's good," muttered Sirius.

"Yeah," agreed James, but he wasn't fully there, because Lily had just flashed him a smile when she left, and his mind was still racing about their duel.

"So you wanna untie me now, or...?"

"Right, right," said James, and he shimmied over so that he could grab his wand, and released both of them.

"I would say thank you," said Sirius, "but you were about to leave me stranded here and have Evans only untie you."

"No way, I would've untied you as soon as I got the chance," countered James.

"All right, if you say so," replied Sirius, obviously not convinced. "I'm hungry."

"You're always hungry."

"That's true," replied Sirius with a longing look at the castle. "Let's go get some food."

"Food? We just ate less than an hour ago!" James said.

"So? Maybe that would explain why we failed so miserably against Evans! An hour is sixty minutes, James, and sixty minutes is a long time not to eat," said Sirius with mock concern.

"It really isn't that long," James laughed.

"Whatever. An empty stomach is a Snape stomach," Sirius quoted himself. The Marauders always said that when they were hungry, because Snivellus was thin as a stick.

"Okay, fine," James grinned to himself.

Back in the Gryffindor common room, as she recalled how she whipped Potter's and Black's arses in the duel, Lily grinned to herself too.

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**Oh, how i love James and Lily :) So, i also love Sirius Black, that's why i chose to include him in this chapter. I love Lupin too, but not Peter :P I decided this chapter in particular would be better with just Padfoot and Prongs, thats why i left the other two out, but they'll be in the next chapter :)**

**I already have the entire story written (well, the years one to seven, not the afterwards one shots) so hopefully they'll be no problem in updating!**

**And i don't want to be one of those authors that holds the next chapter ransom in order to get more reviews, so I won't (new chap should be up in a few days), but please, please, _please_ take the less than two minutes it takes to review! :)**

**ONE LAST THING- In your review, if you have any suggestion for a chapter, at any time and setting, don't be afraid to request it! I love getting suggestions! :)**


	4. Year Three: Hogsmeade

**This is personally one of my favourite chapters :) So, pretty much, in this one, James kind of realizes he might like Lily a bit (yay!), but as usual, he passes it off as another silly crush. In the next chapter we find out it isn't :)**

**So remember, in this story, everyone is 13 and in their third year at Hogwarts. Enjoy!**

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"James! Check this out, it's a crystallized sugar quill!" Remus called across Honeydukes to his friend. Every Hogwarts student was excited to be in Hogsmeade today- it was warm and bright, not to mention their last trip of the school year. It was also the most chaotic, because everyone was scrambling to get everything they wanted for the Summer, knowing they wouldn't be back until next year.

"I already picked up three, Remus! But go look at the stuff at the counter- they got new Sour Slugs! Oi, Peter! Easy on the Blueberry Bubbles, will you, you've had eight in the last two minutes!" James called.

"Nah, he can pig out if he wants to, let him fatten up for Summer!" Sirius joined in. The four friends resorted to having a cheerful yelling-fest to each other from across the store, all of them spread apart.

"No, I don't want to get fattened up here!" protested Peter. "Let's at least go to Three Broomsticks for a butterbeer, that's worth getting fat for!" And his three friends happily agreed, and scampered out of Honeydukes and towards Three Broomsticks.

Their attitude reflected the whole aura of Hogsmeade on that day. Not a single person was upset- except for Lily Evans.

Lily seemed to be the only person in the entire village who was glum that day, but she had a particularly good reason to be. Lily had just received the news in a letter from her sister that her parents were getting a divorce. Of course, the news could easily have waited another week or two to be told when Lily came home, but Petunia just couldn't resist making her unhappy while she was at her "freak school", and knowing that made Lily even more upset. And just to make matters worse, Petunia had the nerve to blame Lily for the divorce!

Alice, Lily's friend, knew that Lily was having a hard day, so she ditched Frank and took her to Three Broomsticks for a nice warm butterbeer to cheer Lily up.

They sat in a booth at the very back of the cozy shop, and Alice bought them both a butterbeer.

"Lily, what's wrong?" Alice asked.

But Lily did not answer; she didn't want everyone knowing about her personal issues at home. So she just attempted a smile at Alice and handed her the Sickles she owed for the butterbeer, but Alice pushed them away.

"No, Lily, it's all right, my treat," grinned Alice. Lily tried as hard as she could to muster up a smile to return, but she just didn't have it in her. Not today, when all she could think about was how life at home would be without her dad around every day.

"Lily, if you want to talk about it, I'm alwa-" but Alice's offer was cut off by the door to the shop banging open and four loud boys hustling in, whooping and laughing. The Marauders- just great. Lily rolled her eyes. She knew that today, their last visit to Hogsmeade of the year, they would be crazy, and no one would be able to control them.

The girls watched the four boys order their drinks, and just to Lily's disfortune, they stared making their way in the direction Lily's booth was. Even worse- they spotted her and Alice and made their way over.

"Hey, how are my two lovely ladies!" called Sirius, sliding in next to Alice and making a big show of putting an arm around her; Alice looked like she was about to gag. James sat next to Lily, and Remus and Peter pulled two spare chairs up to the end of the table.

"We are not 'your lovely' anythings," said Lily bitterly. She was already in a bad mood, and the boys were just making it worse.

Sirius widened his eyes and put his hands up in surrender. "What's wrong with your friend, Curly?" he asked Alice.

Alice rolled her eyes- she was always complaining about her curly ringlets, and how she'd give anything to have Lily's straight silky locks.

"My name is not Curly, its Alice. And she's just having a bad day, so we'd appreciate it if you'd just back off," Alice said.

"A bad day?" Remus frowned. "What happened, Lily?"

Out of all the Marauders, Remus was Lily's favorite, just because he was the calmest and the sweetest and they both shared a passion for books. Usually Lily might feel okay telling him what happened, but she just didn't have it in her today.

She just shook her head, and the Marauders all shared glances.

"Wormtail," James said. "Why don't you go get us all some butterbeers?" Peter, of course, obeyed.

"You okay, Freckles?" James turned towards Lily, a slight smile playing at his lips. They hadn't called each other Freckles or Glasses for about two years, not since their very first day at Hogwarts.

"Just wonderful, Glasses," Lily said sarcastically, folding her arms. "What is it with you making up nicknames for people anyway? We have real names, use them."

"Sorry, Lily, it's just a force of habit. I didn't mean to make you upset," James said. His face was so sad and apologetic that for a moment, Lily pitied him and wanted to hug him and forgive him. Then she remembered he's the one who came and bothered her, so he can deal with it.

"You know what, Prongs?" said Sirius. "To make good ol Lily smile, I think it's time we gave her a nickname too!"

'To make good ol Lily _smile_'? Well, that was highly unusual for the Marauders. It was even more unusual for Sirius.

But Lily somehow knew that they weren't pranking her now, so she went along with it. It couldn't get much worse could it? I mean, she hadn't even smiled for real once today.

"Yeah, okay!" James agreed. "Moony, you start."

"Lily Flower?" Remus suggested.

Lily made a face; no.

"Lilypopkins?" Sirius tried.

Lily pretended to gag.

"Freckles!" James thought he had it for sure.

"No. No no no." was Lily's response. She hated her freckles.

"Aw, come on Lillers!" said James poking her ribs (she still didn't smile). Well, Lily thought, this day keeps getting weirder and weirder. James is never this calm or sweet around her.

"Not Lillers either," joined in Alice. "That was the name of my brother's lizard- it got ran over."

Everyone laughed. Everyone but Lily, that is. James noticed and frowned. Remus noticed James notice and smiled a tiny bit- he knew what James was thinking when he got that look in his eyes.

Prongs was now desperate and determined for Lily to be happy, but also hopeful. This was very strange.

"How about Ginger?" Sirius tried again.

Lily crinkled her nose; nope.

"Lils? Come on, it's so close to your name that you can't possibly be THAT negative about it!" said Remus.

Lily shook her head; no.

"You guys should be less concerned with me and more concerned about where your friend Peter went," Lily pointed out. The boys turned and sure enough, Peter was no longer in the shop.

"Probably got sick from the candy and went back to the castle," Remus waved it off.

"Lily," Alice said quietly. "If you don't mind- I mean, if you're okay with it, I think I'll head back too. Just because I still need to pack for home."

Lily nodded and Alice slid out of the booth. They both knew Alice didn't need to pack- Alice could tell Lily was getting distracted from her sadness and wanted to keep it that way, so she left to make Lily more focused on them. Lily felt a surge of grateful was towards Alice for always having her back.

"How about we just stick to calling you Lily?" James told her. "We shouldn't make up a nickname for you, there's nothing wrong with your name- in fact, it's quite nice. I like the name Lily."

James succeeded in what he was trying to do- Lily smiled at him and blushed, and he grinned back, giving her a thump on the back.

"There's that smile!" hollered Remus, loud enough for everyone to look at them. Lily blushed even more.

The four of them ended up ordering three more butterbeers each before leaving. After, they went to Honeydukes and bought Lily an entire bag of sweets, they stopped by the Zonko's and each got a rubber wand, and left after visiting the outside of the Shrieking Shack.

And then, when it was time to go back to the castle, they were halfway there when Sirius suggested they shouldn't let the only nickname victim that hadn't been nicknamed walk anymore, so they grabbed Lily's legs, arms, and back and carried her until they reached the Gryffindor Common room.

All in all, it turned out to be a great day in the end. Remus, Sirius, and James had succeeded- Lily smiled and laughed like she never had before.

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**WOO! Aww...yay Marauders :3 i love them (: **

**Reviews will, as usual, make me write and update faster!xx**


	5. Year Four: Admittance

**woot woot! New chapter up! Also, if you haven't read my new oneshot, please do :) It's called **20 Things You Never Knew About Fred And George Weasley **and you can just go to my profile to check it out! Im writing more in that style soon!**

**So, in this chapter, its focused around James and Sirius' dialogue. Like i said in the last chapter- THIS IS A BIG CHAPTER FOR JAMES AND LILY BECAUSE JAMES REALIZES HE LIKE LIKES LILS! YAAAYYY! :) enjoy ;3**

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Happiness. That was the only thing that every student in the fourth year at Hogwarts felt on that day. Their final exams had just been taken, and the huge weight was off everyone's shoulders. Finally, with just a week left before Summer vacation, they could just relax, and lounge around with their friends, laughing and talking.

On this particular day, James Potter was sitting under his favorite tree by the lake with his best mate, Sirius Black. The other two Marauders, Remus and Peter, decided to go back to the dorms and just sleep.

James and Sirius had almost done that too, but their energy got the best of them, so there they were, sitting under the tree; Sirius was making bubbles appear out the tip of his wand, and James was ruffling his hair up and staring off into the distance, silent. And silence was very unlike James Potter.

"Close your mouth, James," Sirius said, making the bubbles fly into James' mouth. "What's caught your attention so much anyway?"

But James did not answer his best friend, because he was still staring at the figure approaching them slowly. James knew who she was just by the glint of her dark red hair. The figure was Lily Evans.

As Lily got closer and closer, James' eyes followed her, and when Sirius realized what his friend was staring at, he burst out laughing. "Really, James?"

"What?" James said, seeming to realize Sirius was there.

And as Lily walked right past them, waving to her friend by the lake, Sirius struggled to contain his snickers while James narrowed his eyes at him.

"What's so funny?"

"You," said Sirius, breathless. "You've been staring at her for ten minutes! James, you fancy Lily Evans!"

"What?" said James, shocked by this accusation. "I do not! Lily Evans hates me, and I dislike her just as much."

"Sure," Sirius snorted. "That's why you've been goggling her for fifteen minutes- look at you, you still haven't stopped!"

"Sirius, listen to me. I do not like Lily Evans. Lily Evans does not like me," James spoke in a slow voice, as if he was speaking to a child. "That's the way it is, that's the way it always will be. Got it?"

"Come on, James! We're supposed to be best mates!"

"We are best mates!"

"Then tell me that you do fancy Evans!"

"Best mates aren't supposed to lie to one another, so I can't."

"Best mates aren't supposed to lie to one another, so you have to."

"Sirius!"

"James!"

"I don't fancy her!"

"What color was her shirt yesterday?"

"Pink and black."

"Aha!"

"Blimey Sirius. Just because I noticed that doesn't mean I like her. I notice things about everyone!"

"Then what color was my shirt yesterday?" Sirius challenged.

"Er. . .red?"

"No! It was gray, for Pete's sake, Prongs, admit you fancy Lily Evans!"

"But I don't!"

"But you do!"

"Fine," surrendered James. "I do not fancy Lily, I just. . .I dunno, it's just a silly crush is all!"

"Well, that's obviously as good as it's going to get for now, so fine. But mark my words James, one day, you will be head over heels in love with her and realize that smart, daring, intelligent Sirius Black had predicted that all along, and then you will put him down for everything in your will and pay him loads of Galleons for being so amazing," joked Sirius, his chest swelling with fake pride.

"Um, tempting, but no thanks," said James.

And the pair went back to what they were doing before, just lounging under the shade and making wand bubbles. Right when they were in the middle of conversation about how to prank Snivellus next, James spoke up.

"Sirius?"

"Yeah?"

"D'you think Evans fancies me?"

"No."

"You sure?"

"Merlin's beard, James, that girl is going to be the end of you."

". . . But does she fancy me?"

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**that was short, i know, but i dunno...i kinda liked it :) Did you? Let me know in a review please and thank you, and i'll try to respond, but my PMs have started doing that weird lets-not-work-when-she-wants-to-use-us thing again, but if i don't thank you through there, trust me, i'll give you a shoutout or respond to the review in the AN of the next chapter! :)**

**Speaking of the next chapter, it's longer than this, don't worry. **

**I think i'm going to give you a little glimpse of it, how about it? Here goes...**

_Lily nodded. "You did really well in the game last week," she told him._

_ "You were there?" James asked in shock. Usually Lily tried to avoid anything that just proved James' arrogance. _

_ "Yeah," she said. "Yeah, I was there. I decided to watch that time. Great job almost kicking Avery in the face- the Slytherins were pissed," Lily chuckled. _

_ "Oh yeah," James grinned. "You know, I did feel like I played a lot better that day," he paused and glanced at Lily. "Maybe you're my lucky charm."_

_ That, Lily was not expecting. She stared at him in shock for a few seconds before he raised his eyebrows, snapping her out of her reverie._

_ "Me? Nah, I'm more unlucky, always ordering you around for prefect duties," Lily covered up. _

_ "No," James said, frowning. "No, you're not unlucky to me a bit, trust me."**  
**_

**YAAAYYY JILY JILY JILY! :D bye now ;3**


	6. Year Five: A Walk In The Rain

**Hello, lovely readers! Chapter five here! WOO! TWO MORE TO GO BEFORE WE GET TO THE FREE SCENES! :D**

**So, as i said, if i didnt respond to your reviews in PM form, i'd do it here, so I am. Here we go:**

**Anonymous: **_Hey, anon, don't be afraid to sign in- i dont bite! Anyway, no, it was not a mistake. James Potter is a brunette, because people with brown AND BLACK hair are considered brunettes. Thats why there's readheads, blondes, and brunettes, no one called a "blackhaired". Maybe there is where you're from, but in Canada there isnt, so yeah. Also, even though i am going by the books, i'd just like to point out that James' hair in the movies is a light brown (: But thank you for your concern! ^.^_

**Mickey S.J. Reily: **_Thanks a ton for all your kind reviews! :) And yes, i am watching the Olympics. My favorite events are swimming and beach volleyball :)__  
_

**Annie2000: **_Thanks for favoriting, and your review! xoxo__  
_

**A-Little-Ray-Of-Sunlight: **_Even though I already replied to you in PMs, I'd just like to say thanks again. Your opinions for my new story really helped (thanks!) and I'm doing a Neville one ;) xxx__  
_

**Okay, well, that seems to be it for that chapter! So this chapter is pretty fluffy (yay!) and James and Lily are 15, in their fifth year. Enjoy!**_  
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* * *

It was the coldest, gloomiest, rainiest day of the entire year. Most of the students at Hogwarts were inside, doing homework by the fire if not sleeping, but two Fifth Year Gryffindors were out.

They were out in different places, of course. Lily Evans was one of them, and she was out at Hagrid's Hut, for she had just delivered to him a vial of Doxy Repelliant from Slughorn. Lily was just leaving the hut now.

The other student who was out was James Potter. He just couldn't get any rest inside- he was much too awake. Sirius and Remus were fighting (Remus was mad because Sirius accidentally destroyed his novel), and Peter was sleeping in their dormitory, so there was nothing for James to do. His mind was racing about anything and everything, so he decided to come out. He got his broomstick and was now flying, doing laps around the Quidditch pitch in the pouring rain.

"'Bye, Hagrid!" called Lily as she left his hut. When she came, it was rather sunny, so she didn't bother bringing a sweater. Now she wished she had.

She decided to run back to the castle, as she was only wearing her usual robes and sneakers, with no umbrella at all.

Lily put her bag around her shoulders and started at a quick jog back towards the castle, her face down to shield her from the rain.

James was already on his thirty eighth lap around the pitch when he saw her. A small, running, huddled figure desperately heading back to the castle. He could tell it was Lily from her red hair, and the way she had that cheery bounce in her step.

James grinned to himself. He and his friends knew he fancied Lily, as did Lily herself by now from all the times he had asked her out. James swiftly but quietly flew over to a few feet from behind Lily.

"Evans!" he called. Lily spun around.

"Potter?" she asked. "What are you doing out here?"

"Laps," he said, and when she raised an eyebrow, he added, "Couldn't sleep. What are you doing?"

"Me? I'm trying to get back to the castle without freezing my arse off," Lily said. James laughed, and Lily smiled.

She wasn't quite mad at him anymore for what happened a week ago; Snape had called her a Mudblood just after their O.W.L.s, and she took her anger out on James. She felt bad, but neither had brought it up. They weren't quite friends, though.

"Well then," James said, bringing his wand out of his pocket. "Allow me to escort you." He conjured up a bright red umbrella and, still on his broom, flew right up next to Lily, his feet dangling at the height of her thighs so he was taller than her.

He held the umbrella right over her head, and when she walked, he flew right next to her. Lily blushed and looked away, and James grinned.

"Why aren't you inside?" Lily asked him.

"Moony and Padfoot lost it with each other, and Wormtail is dozing," James told her. He could use their Animangus names around Lily, because she had found out about Remus by accident at the beginning of the year. The Marauders all trusted her, though, so revealed their secrets too.

Lily nodded. "You did really well in the game last week," she told him.

"You were there?" James asked in shock. Usually Lily tried to avoid anything that just proved James' arrogance.

"Yeah," she said. "Yeah, I was there. I decided to watch that time. Great job almost kicking Avery in the face- the Slytherins were pissed," Lily chuckled.

"Oh yeah," James grinned. "You know, I did feel like I played a lot better that day," he paused and glanced at Lily. "Maybe you're my lucky charm."

That, Lily was not expecting. She stared at him in shock for a few seconds before he raised his eyebrows, snapping her out of her reverie.

"Me? Nah, I'm more unlucky, always ordering you around for prefect duties," Lily covered up.

"No," James said, frowning. "No, you're not unlucky to me a bit, trust me."

Lily hesitated, the words getting caught in her mouth. "Okay," is what she finally decided on.

The castle was getting closer and closer- they'd be there within five minutes. But Lily continued to walk, and James continued to hover shielding her head from the cold rain.

"Hey, James," Lily spoke up.

"Yeah?"

"Remember two years ago, in our last visit of the year to Hogsmeade? The one where you guys decided to nickname me?"

_Of course I remember_, James thought. _I'd never forget._

"Yeah," is all he said.

"Well remember how you guys made me smile that day even though I was feeling like rubbish?" Lily said.

"Yeah," James repeated. "Yeah, what about that?"

"Nothing," said Lily, the corners of her mouth twitching. "Nothing about that, it was just a good day."

James' heart soared. He made Lily Evans have a good day two years ago and she's reminding him and thanking him again now!

"Well, I'm glad, Freckles," James smiled.

"Don't get too ahead of yourself, Glasses, I just wanted to say thanks," Lily smiled back.

They were at the castle now, so James dismounted his broom and put away the umbrella as they went inside, heading to Gryffindor tower.

"Thanks for what?" he asked.

_Yeah, thanks for what?_ Lily asked herself, because she wasn't exactly sure.

Thanks for meeting me on the train the first day, thanks for helping me in Defense Against Dark Arts, thanks for defending me against Severus, thanks for trying so hard to become my friend and ask me out, thanks for trusting me with yours and your friends' biggest secrets? Thanks for walking back with me and covering me now? Thanks for just everything? Lily wasn't sure what to say- she just knew that right now was one of those rare times when she actually liked James Potter and wanted to be friends with him. She wasn't though- not now, anyway.

So Lily just looked at James and shrugged. "Just... thanks," she said.

"Oh," said James, looking disappointed and slightly confused. "Well, thanks to you too Lily," he said.

Now Lily was confused, because there was absoloutley nothing that James Potter had to thank Lily Evans for.

"What are you thanking me for?" she asked. They were just a few steps away from the portrait hole now.

"A lot. Not giving away the Marauders' secrets, ditching Snape, tutoring me and Sirius in Charms, letting me walk with you now. You know, a lot," said James. But since that was _way_ too formal and sincere for the prankster, he added with a big fake grin and wink to Lily, "Thanks for existing."

Lily laughed, because that was more like James, with his cheesy pickup lines and attempts to make her like him.

"Okay, Prongs," she chuckled. James liked it when she referred to him as Prongs. "Whatever you say."

They entered the Common Room and turned to each other.

"Well," Lily said. "Night."

"Night," James replied as she climbed the girls' staircase and entered her dorm.

"PRONGS!"

James nearly jumped out of his skin. He saw Sirius and Remus sitting on the boys' staircase behind him.

"What's bloody wrong with you, Sirius! You nearly scared me out of my wits!"

"What's bloody wrong with YOU, James!" countered Remus.

"Yeah, off for a late night stroll with Evans and not bothering to tell us why!" Sirius added, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively when he said Lily's name.

"What happened? What'd she say? What'd you guys do?" Remus attacked James with questions, and the latter rolled his eyes.

"Nothing happened," said James. "She was walking back from Hagrid's and I was doing laps around the Quidditch pitch so I made an umbrella for her and we walked back together."

"But you didn't walk back in silence," pointed out Sirius.

"No, we did not," James said.

"Well then blimey James, what did you talk about?"

"Nothing! We just talked about the Quidditch game and Hogsmeade and stuff..." James trailed off. Yes, they talked about Hogsmeade, but he didn't have to specify what Hogsmeade trip they were talking about.

Sirius and Remus sighed.

"That's probably not all of it," the werewolf said, "But if it is, you are getting NOWHERE with this girl."

Sirius let out a low whistle. "I feel for you, Prongs," he said. "But don't worry, she'll have to come around some day."

The three friends walked back to their room and went to bed, where Peter had beat them to it hours ago. Before James fell asleep, he thought of what Sirius said. _"She'll have to come around some day."_

That day could not come soon enough.

* * *

**haha, i liked that chapter :) If you did, or even if you didnt, let me know in a REVIIEEWW! :) xo**

**Also, last chapter I had the preview for this one, so I think I'll do that again.**

**So, for chapter six...**

_"Lily," he said seriously. _

_"Hmm?"_

_"Do you still think I'm an... arrogant toerag, was it?" That's what she had called him last year, and more insults previous years too. _

_Lily hesitated, the spoke slowly, analyzing every sentence before it came out of her mouth. _  
_"No. . . I mean, you haven't really given me a reason to think that for a while, have you? But I cant really say the same for Sirius," she smirked. "And I'm sorry about saying that last year, with the whole O.W.L and Snape thing, you were just trying to help me."_

_James nodded. "Well, at least I'm no longer a proud piece of fabric used for the feet," he smiled. Lily smiled back. _

**So, does it sound good? PLEASE LET ME KNOW IN A REVIEW. Also, I've reached 650 views! THANK YOU ALL! XOXO.**_  
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**If you like having the previews, let me know too please, or if you'd rather not have the previews and wait for the suspense of the next chapters. So, review! Bye!**


	7. Year Six: Hogsmeade Again

**Hi everyone! Here's chapter 6, but first, my response to the reviews of the last chapter!:**

**Mickey S.J. Riley: **_Thanks! I also appreciate your preview feedback, it helps authors a lot to know what their reviewers do and do not like about the story :) And i hope you had fun on your vacation to Canada! (I live there!)_

** . : **_Have i ever told you how much i LOVE your pen name? Well, i do :) And thanks for your review, as well as your input on the previews!_

**A-Little-Ray-Of-Sunlight: **_I'm really glad you liked it! And thanks again for helping with my other story :) And im also excited that they're getting closer! EEK! The visual of him flying next to her with an umbrella was just a little daydream i formed while on tumblr, so i figured hey, why not turn it into a chapter! :D Also, thanks to you too for your Preview input (:_

**Ellie111lolz: **_Thanks! And ME?! No, thanks YOU for being such a great reader and reviewer! _

**Love-Pink26: **_Thanks a ton!_

**RavenclawWithHisNoseInABook: **_Thank you so much! I also love your penname. GO RAVENCLAWS!_

**Annie2000: **_Thank you soooo much! It really means a lot!  
_

**So, that was it for those reviews! Please keep them coming! :) **_  
_

**This chapter is one of my personal favorites (also its the second to last of the ordered chapters! AHH!) Lily and James, as well as the rest of the crew, are 16.**

**PLEASE READ THE AUTHORS NOTE AT THE BOTTOM WHEN YOU ARE DONE!**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

James' heart was hammering in his chest. Hard. He'd been waiting for this very day since third year, but it had never actually happened or seemed like a logical thing. Only a hope, a small, sparkling daydream.

But now it wasn't. Now, it was real. Since it was real it had to be perfect. James was going to make it perfect.

As he threw on his Soaring Squabblers Quidditch hoodie, Sirius, Remus, and Peter walked into the room.

"You all right there, Prongs?" Sirius grinned. He knew how big of a day it was for his best friend.

"I think so," James said. "Little nervous, to say the least, but I'm doing okay."

Remus laughed. "You're going to have to do better than 'okay' if you want to impress Lily, James. I think you should know that after three years of trying."

Oh, he did know. He knew perfectly well not to take this day for granted.

"Well then mate," Peter said. "We'll let you go and have your fun then. Just remember, if you need a mastermind escape or a group of three incredible wizards to aid you, you know where we are."

James rolled his eyes, but was actually comforted on the inside by his friends jokes. He knew he wouldn't need them today, though. Not today, when it would be just him and Lily. Today was the first day she ever agreed to go with him to Hogsmeade (not as a date, as she had told him much too many times for his liking).

They'd been there together before at the same time in third year, but not just the two of them, and not as friends either. Yes, this day had to be flawless.

"Get out, you guys," James said to his friends good naturedly. "I have to meet Lily in the Common Room in five minutes."

Sirius whistled as he left the room behind Remus and Peter. "You guys are even _walking_ there together? That's pretty hardcore, mate." And with that, he left.

Now James was worried. Was it too much? He wasn't sure- he'd never been in a serious relationship before, so he didn't know if this counted, because this was by no means a relationship- if Lily thought he thought it was, she'd be more dangerous than the Whomping Willow.

Sure, there had been the silly crushes or even small dates in his first few years, even flirting with other girls in poor attempts to make Lily jealous, but he'd never stuck with a girl for more than a few weeks. He knew if it was Lily he would; the problem was Lily didn't realize that.

But now, he did not by any means want to overdo it in fear of upsetting Lily somehow. No, this day had to be amazing. Even if they were just going as friends.

Is it too much? What if she gets bored? What if Snape decided to come and crash their day? Now James knew he was overthinking it, but he couldn't help it.

With a sigh and a last look in the mirror, he left to meet Lily in the Common room.

* * *

"You're kidding!" Lily exclaimed.

"Nope, I'm not," grinned James. "They even sit you down and serve you, way nicer than a real restaurant."

They were walking in the sun towards Hogsmeade, taking their time, unlike Remus and Sirius and Peter who always liked to sprint there and pop out to scare people as they entered. For once, James was grateful they weren't there. He could just imagine what it would be like if they were here, only ten minutes into the day, and making jokes about him and Lily.

"You've got to be joking!" Lily's emerald eyes were wide in their sockets. "How is that even...?"

"You don't believe me? Well then I guess I'll just have to take you down there sometime and let you see for yourself," James suggested. He had been amusing Lily for more than five minutes during their walk to Hogsmeade about how he had found a secret entrance to the kitchens, where house elves served you when you came in.

Lily smiled at him. "You'd do that? Really?"

"Of course I would," James replied. "But only on Saturday mornings, because that's when the elves are happiest for some reason so the food and service is better," he winked.

Lily laughed, and the wind blew her hair back from her face; James thought it was the prettiest thing he had ever seen. It was warm, so she was wearing not her robes but a dark red sundress that brought out her eyes perfectly.

"Well then, sounds like a plan," Lily said. James grinned for the umpteenth time today.

He couldn't help himself, so he added, "You know, Lily, I was more hoping you'd say 'sounds like a date', considering no girl can resist my flawlessness." That earned him a playful swat on the arm.

Lily's grin gave even Sirius' best flirty smile a run for its money. She said, "Well, James, don't be too surprised; I've been told I'm pretty irresistible myself." And it was true, she had- by James, pretty much every time he tried to ask her out (only to get rejected).

They both broke into fits of laughter and mocking comments about how amazing they were, and by the time they caught themselves, they were in the village.

"Where do you want to go first?" asked James.

"Well, I was thinking either Three Broomsticks or-"

"BOO!"

Lily had been cut off by someone popping out at her from the shadows. She screeched and backed up into James, pulling out her wand in the blink of an eye. Sirius walked out of the shadows.

"Got you pretty good, Evans," he winked.

Lily's expression itself was enough to cause nightmares. She was usually gentle, even with the Marauders, but Sirius nearly scared her to death- especially now that Death Eaters were hunting down Muggleborns.

"SIRIUS ORION BLACK!" she yelled.

"Uh oh."

Sirius took off at a sprint and Lily was just about to chase him when James gripped her shoulders, restraining her. She finally relented and turned to James.

"He's a prat," James said, but Lily could tell he was smiling on the inside.

"I know," she said flatly.

"Don't worry, I'll get him back later," James assured her, and they turned to go.

"Where did you say you wanted to go again?" James asked.

"Zonko's." Lily's answered changed. Huh.

So off they went to Zonko's. James held open the purple-and-red door for Lily, and once inside, Lily started browsing, but James had spent much too long in the place before; he knew where everything was and what it was.

"C'mere, Lil," he said, grabbing her by the wrist and leading her to the back of the store.

"See this?" he held up a silver and gold cylinder- it looked like a kaleidoscope.

"What is it?" Lily frowned.

"Whatever you do, Lily, do not by any means put it in your mouth, pocket, eye, or pretty much anywhere else," James said.

"Why? Whats it do?"

James hesitated, looked around, and found a testing bowl on the shelf near him. He put in the cylinder; nothing happened.

"Well?" asked Lily. "It's not doing anything."

"Wait," said James. And right after the word was out of his mouth, the cylinder started shaking and vibrating dramatically, then it exploded- all the sides evaporated into dust and green slime went everywhere in the bowl.

Lily laughed. "That's awesome. You know, I think I'm gonna buy one of these. Petunia won't know what's hit her," she grinned.

"Attagirl!" exclaimed James. "Learning from the good old Marauders!"

They each bought a few things and left Zonko's, deciding to go to Three Broomsticks now.

Along the way they passed the Shrieking Shack- James paused outside of the gates.

"Never really seen it from the outside for long," he murmured. "Moony tries to avoid it."

"It's a beautiful place, really," Lily said, standing next to him.

"That old dump?" asked James incredulously. "That's just about as beautiful as Sirius' attitude when you wake him up on a weekend."

"No, really, James," Lily insisted. "Maybe it's not beautiful from looking at it, but because I know about you guys, in my opinion it gives off a beautiful aura." James stared at her while she spoke, taking in every word.

"I mean, think about it. You all meet up there every month and you all went through so much trouble to just help and be with your friend; that's amazing. James, that's where you guys really connect, even though you've been together from year one," she turned to look at him. "I think the Shrieking Shack is the best sight in all of Hogsmeade."

James didn't say so aloud, but to him at the moment, the redheaded girl who was just talking was the best sight in Hogsmeade.

James had no idea what to say in response to that speech, so he just nodded and said, "Yeah. Yeah, I guess so."

"Come on," Lily said. "Let's go get some butterbeer."

* * *

"For you," James said, putting Lily's butterbeer down at their table. Lily handed him the money she owed for it, but he wouldn't take it.

"Don't bother," he told her. "My treat."

Lily looked unsure, but she put the money down. "If you say so," she said slowly. "But, James... you know this isn't a...?"

"A date? Yeah, I know. But still, my treat," he said. Lily smiled.

"Well thank you," Lily said.

They talked for a few minutes about Quidditch, their O.W.L grades from last year, and even Petunia's new boyfriend, Vernon. Making jokes about him turned out to be James' area of expertise.

"You said he had a mustache?" James said, smiling, and Lily was still laughing about a joke he said before, but she nodded. "Blimey! Sirius should give him a makeover." Sirius Black was always mock-flaunting his perfect hair and skin. As much as Lily hated to admit it, he was very handsome. So was James, actually.

They eventually calmed down, and James spoke up.

"Lily," he said seriously.

"Hmm?"

"Do you still think I'm an... arrogant toerag, was it?" That's what she had called him last year, and more insults previous years too.

Lily hesitated, the spoke slowly, analyzing every sentence before it came out of her mouth.

"No. . . I mean, you haven't really given me a reason to think that for a while, have you? But I cant really say the same for Sirius," she smirked. "And I'm sorry about saying that last year, with the whole O.W.L and Snape thing, you were just trying to help me."

James nodded. "Well, at least I'm no longer a proud piece of fabric used for the feet," he smiled. Lily smiled back.

"But Lily, I'm honestly not trying to force you or anything, but I'm just curious... why won't you go out with me then?"

Lily frowned, thinking. "I don't know, James. I think it's just because I'm not really looking for a relationship right now. I'm sorry."

"No, it's okay," he said. But him and his friends knew it wasn't- James was desperate for Lily.

They drained their butterbeers with a new conversation and left Three Broomsticks. The sun was setting, a brilliant orange along the village horizon, so they decided to head back to the castle.

They were walking side by side for quite some time in silence until Lily said James' name.

"Yeah?" he asked.

She stopped, walked closer to him, and poked him on the shoulder, a slight grin on her face.

"You're it," she said, and she sprinted away as fast as she could, he red hair billowing behind her.

James was stunned for a second, but his Quidditch reflexes allowed him to chase her just as fast. He finally caught up to her and tapped her back, then darted away from her.

They were laughing and playing tag the whole way back.

* * *

**YAAAAY AND THATS THE END OF THAT CHAPTER! to be honest, the end is why i like that chapter :) **

**What did you think? Also, i decided not to put a preview this time- not because of the reviews and your opinions, just because the next chapter is the last before the random ones, so i think it should be kept a surprise. HOWEVER, if you're REEEAALLYY desperate and cant possibly wait until the next update, PM me and i'll send you ONE dialogue sentence from it ;)**

**So above i told you that this bottom AN was important, and it is. I'm currently working on about eight different fics; two for the Hunger Games, one for Percy Jackson, one for Divergent, and four for Harry Potter. I can't help it- the ideas just come, and i write! So since i dont know if all of my readers are fans of the other stories, i'm only going to tell you a bit about my Harry Potter fics, because if you're reading this, you're probably a Potterhead.**

**So one of them is a story about Victoire Weasley, Bill and Fleur's eldest daughter. It is another installment of my "20 Things" collection. If you haven't read those, please do :) There is "20 Things You Never Knew About Neville Longbottom" and "20 Things You Never Knew About Fred and George" published already. If all goes well, Victoire's should be up very soon.**

**Another HP one is a letter. I won't share who it's from and who it's to, because that's a surprise, but i think you'll like it :)**

**The third fic I'm working on is about Sirius. That's all i will say, for now.**

**And the last one is the one im THE MOST EXCITED ABOUT. ITS GONNA BE EPIC AND HUGE GUYS. READY? DRUMROLL PLEASE. . . **

**_I'M DOING A REWRITE OF THE NINETEEN YEARS LATER EPILOGUE! _  
**

**__Eek! It's HUGE, and i am so excited! I know i won't be able to do it justice; very few authors even attempt this! I have some good ideas rolling around, though, so i'm going to pen them down and see how it goes. I can't decide whether it's going to be a very long oneshot, a twoshot with medium chapters, or a threeshot with medium chapters, because i don't know how far exactly into the epilogue i want to go.**

**I do know, however, that many characters will make appearances that they didn't in the book. It will NOT be AU, so there will be nobody dead who comes back :( These people will make appearances: George and Angelina Weasley, Draco and Astoria Malfoy, Cho Chang, Luna Lovegood, Percy and Audrey Weasley, AND ALL THE WEASLEY AND POTTER CHILDREN! WOO!**

**Please, _add me to your AUTHOR ALERTS so you can read these stories when they are published! _Thanks SO HUFFLEPUFFING MUCH TO ALL MY READERS, REVIEWERS, AND SUBSCRIBERS :) I LOAF YOU ALL FOREVER.**

**Okay, that was very long, and i very very much hope for your sake you read the whole thing! See you soon! xoxo**


	8. Year Seven: The News

**YAY I LOVE CHAPTER SEVEN SO MUCH AND I HOPE YOU DO TOO OKAY I'LL SAVE THE AUTHORS NOTE UNTIL THE END :)**

* * *

"Lily."

"What?" She spun around to face James, a look of pure anger in her eyes.

"Well... why are you mad?" He asked sheepishly.

"Why am I mad?" she hissed, stepping dangerously close to him. "I'll tell you why I'm mad. I'm mad because of this." She shoved a now-crumpled piece of parchment at James' chest, and turned and stormed off again.

"Wait, Lily! At least let me read this before you storm off again!" he called, running down the corridor after. He was a lot faster, and caught up to Lily.

"Fine," she huffed. "Read it. As if you don't already know."

"Wha-? How would I know what this is supposed to be? If its a bill for some prank, Lily, I swear it wasn't me, we've only been back a few days!" James protested.

Lily rolled her eyes. "Its not a bill, Potter. So if you'd rather keep guessing than actually reading it, I think I'll just be heading off now."

"No! Lily, I'm reading it, I'm reading it!"

Lily crossed her arms and waited for him to be done. James unfolded the parchment, and read the letter inside of it:

_Dear Lily Evans,_

_For your seventh and final year at Hogwarts, I am pleased to present you with the honor of being Head Girl. Your duty badge is in the attached parcel._

_I have chosen you for this position because of your constant leadership skills and strengths in all academic and social subjects. I know I have chosen the right young woman for this position._

_Your Head Girl duties will begin immediately once you arrive at Kings Cross station. You are to help younger students around the station and into Hogwarts._

_At the castle, you will be treated like a professor. It is yours and the Head Boy's jobs to make sure the student body is in order, and you will both do patrols around the school every night._

_Your partner, the Head Boy, will be James Potter. A week after term begins, please come see me in my office for further instructions. I have full confidence you will be an excellent Head Girl for the class of 1978._

_Signed,_  
_Professor Albus Dumbledore, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry Headmaster_

James looked up at Lily when he was done reading, a brilliant smile on his face.

"Lily, this is excellent! We get to be Head Boy and Girl together!" he exclaimed. "Why would you be upset at all about that?"

Lily looked outraged now. James simply didn't understand it- him and Lily were friends, weren't they?

"I'm upset because you don't deserve that! Bloody hell, you weren't even a prefect! Remus, one of your best mates, is now deeply upset! He thinks its because he's a...a...you know! We have to share a dormitory and do nightly patrols now! You-Know-Who is rising even stronger, hunting for Muggleborns like me, and being Head with you makes it worse because even more Slytherins will be out to get me!" She said it all in one long, angry breath. "James, this is my last year here! It was supposed to be brilliant and now all this is happening!"

"I...I'm sorry, Lily," James said after a while. "I didn't know it meant that much to you, I'm really sorry. I didn't even know I was Head Boy and we have a meeting with Dumbledore in two days apparently," he said, avoiding Lily's piercing gaze.

"How did you not know that, James?!" Lily demanded. "Does that just prove how ignorant you are, caught up in your own world?"

That stung James more than Lily anticipated- it was written all over his face. She immediately regretted the words, but didn't say so.

"Maybe I am," James said softly. "My world is easier. You-Know-Who doesn't exist there. Remus isn't a werewolf, and Sirius is fine at home, and Peter isn't insecure at all," he said. Then added, quietly, "And, in my world, you wouldn't be mad at me right not."

"Well, come back to reality then," Lily said.

"Okay," James shrugged. "And I'm sorry I had to get this news now. I probably didn't even notice the letter when it came...the Summer has been really busy, with Sirius moving in and all..." he trailed off.

Lily noticed the pained expression on his face from talking about Sirius. She already knew one secret about the Marauders, so James and Sirius decided to trust her with another; Sirius' family was cruel to him. It certainly didn't seem like it to other students, the way he always was cracking jokes, but they gave him a really hard time for being Gryffindor and a supporter of Muggleborns. So, Sirius moved in with the Potters over the Summer.

"Well, I'm sorry about that James. I really am," Lily said. "But that doesn't make this any easier."

"I know," James said. "I know it doesn't. So let's sort this out. You said Remus wanted this?"

Lily nodded. "He wanted it so badly, James. You should know that. He wanted to feel normal."

That hurt James on the inside. One of his best friends, a werewolf, not getting the Head Boy position- and to make matters worse, apparently now Remus thought it was because of his condition.

"I don't even want this anymore," James said, sick to his stomach. "Remus does deserve it. He deserves it more than anyone. I wasn't even prefect!" He looked at Lily. "Lily. Tomorrow morning I'm going to go to Dumbledore and see if I can resign the job to Remus. Okay?"

"No," Lily said. "No, he wont let you, and it will only make him feel more different if you did."

"That's true," James said slowly. "So I'm stuck here."

Lily bit her lip and nodded. "We still have to share a dorm, and do nightly patrols, though."

James rolled his eyes. "Sharing a dorm isn't that bad! I'll sleep in the Common Room, or in my old dorm," he said.

"Dumbledore won't let you," she said quietly. "I already asked McGonagall if I could. Well, she said I could if I really wanted to, but it was obvious she was disappointed."

"Oh," was all James said, surprised. "Okay. But the nightly patrols? C'mon Lily, that'll be fun! We get to bust kids, give them the detention that I've gotten way too many times!"

Even Lily had to smile a little at that. "All right," she said.

"And the Slytherins? Who cares if they hate us? They've always hated us. We're Gryffindors- we're lions, Lily! Be a lion!"

Lily actually laughed now. "All right," she repeated. "I guess it won't be so bad."

James grinned at her. "It won't be," he said. "I'm a Marauder. It's my job to make sure things aren't so bad. And I'll make it my priority to make sure your last year here is perfect. Okay?" he said.

Lily finally looked up at him, grinning. "Okay."

They walked back to the Common Room together, James reading the letter over and over, and Lily pinning her new badge to her chest.

"Lily," James started. "Other than the reasons you listed, why were you so mad that it was me that's your partner? I mean, we're friends, right?"

Lily hesitated. "Yes," she said cautiously. "Yes, we are friends. I just- I don't know, James. I over reacted. I'm sorry."

"It's fine," he waved her off. They were in the Common Room now.

"Well, goodnight, Lily," he said, heading for the boys' staircase.

Lily raised an eyebrow and cleared her throat, causing James to turn around.

"We share an entire dorm half the size of the Great Hall now, remember?" she said, pointing at the big staircase in between the boys' and girls' dorms. Each House had one just in case a Head was made from there.

"Oh yeah," James said, and switched staircases, Lily behind him.

The room was untouched- Lily hadn't been in there since term started five days ago. It was huge, though.

The living room was where they were standing, and it had a plush scarlet carpet, and the curtains and picture frames and accents were all gold- Gryffindor colors.

There were three couches surrounding a table, a desk and mini-fridge in the corner, and a large Gryffindor banner covering the wall with a bookcase leaning on it.

There were two doors, too; one leading to James' room, the other to Lily's.

James and Lily's grins of awe were matching. James' eyes roved the room, and he whooped and ran to the mini-fridge.

"Sirius is gonna be so jealous!" he said. Lily laughed, and headed towards her room.

"I'll let you play with that for a bit," she said, chuckling. "Goodnight, James."

"'Night, Lil!" he called after her as she shut her bedroom door.

She plopped down on her bed and allowed herself to get lost in her thoughts.

Maybe it wouldn't be so bad. James could make nearly anything fun, and they were friends, after all. Maybe he could show her all the secret passageways during their patrols. Maybe he would make sharing a dorm enjoyable.

Lily didn't know at that time that all those "maybe"'s would come true. She also didn't know that within a month, James would be her best friend. She didn't know that a month after that, he'd be her boyfriend, and the Marauders would be her brothers.

Lily Evans had no idea that within a year after their graduation, her and James would be married, and not long after that, they'd have a son. A son named Harry Potter. They'd die protecting him from You-Know-Who.

Lily was then oblivious to the fact that it was her love that would keep him alive. That he would be the Chosen One, and do great things in life.

As seventeen year old Lily Evans tried to sleep, she was innocent- she had no idea what was in store for her, James, and her future child.

Lily Evans had no idea at all that she and James only had two years left to live, and so she drifted off into a peaceful slumber in the Head's dormitory, James doing the same in his room.

* * *

**hmm. Yeah, the ending was kinda depressing :S I JUST LOVE JILY SO MUCH. **

**Okay, moving on from my extreme fangirling moment, that was the last of the "ordered chapters", meaning now all the chapters will have random settings, and it wont be moving on from year to year, so it could be like one will be year 4 at Hogwarts, and the next year 1.**

**IM EXCITED.**

**Annnyywaaaayyy, I posted a new story today, called "Unfolded". It's basically about the Next Generation Potter/Weasley clan, each chapter focusing on a different person. I'd really appreciate it if you would read that ^.^**

**So, I'll post the next chapter for this story soon, and please put me on Author Alert! Reviews are hugs from Kreacher :)**


	9. Prologue and Epilogue

_**Epilogue/Prologue**_

* * *

And so, that is the tale of Lily and James. Or at least, seven short tales about them as they grew up.

But now, we are done with the gradually growing up. Now, we get to have random, scattered tales. Now, we get happy one shots that could be set at any time from Year One at Hogwarts to when they tragically died.

Each new tale now will have all the same guidelines as the previous ones, with a few slight twists. Before, every story was set at Hogwarts. Now, they can be set at the school, at their houses, or in another Wizarding or Muggle setting.

Before, each story was set in order. Now, one chapter could be when they are fifteen and the next when they are eleven. Before, those tales had only seven parts- one for each year. Now, these random parts could go on for months, years- you never know.

So, without further ado, let's continue on with our stars, the Stag and the Doe.

* * *

**So basically, that's the end of the ordered chapters and start of the random ones. **

**I know I can't really count this alone as a "chapter", but I want to give it time to sink in. Therefore I will leave this up, but instead of posting the next chapter in a few days, I'll post it in a few hours or later tonight ^.^**


	10. Age 17: Picnic

**I think this is the longest chapter yet! Which would make sense, because it's my favourite and it was SO much fun to write :) So, as we are on the out-of-line chapters now, I put their age in the chapter name so that no one gets confused. **

**So here, they're in the middle of Year Seven, and Lily and James are already together ^.^ Thus, the gang is 17/18 years of age :) Enjoy!**

* * *

It was the perfect day at Hogwarts. Bright and sunny, and even though it was the afternoon, the sun was a blazing orange above the lake.

Four boys sat underneath a large willow near the lake. These boys were best friends- always had been. One of the boys, Sirius Black, was lying on his back, staring up at the leaves. His tie was undone and hanging casually around his neck, and his arms were behind his head. He was relaxed, as usual, his curly black hair messed up in its perfect way.

Another boy with sandy brown hair, Remus Lupin, was carelessly drawing with a twig in the dirt, thinking instead about lunch rather than listening to what Peter Pettigrew was telling him about. Probably complaining about the massive hole in his pajamas again.

The last boy sitting under the tree was the most focused. This boy was seventeen year old James Potter. He was leaning against the tree trunk, nonchalantly ruffling his already messy black hair. He was throwing the Snitch in his hand up and down, but his eyes were focused at the castle in the distance. Because, of course, he was waiting. Waiting for _her._

"Come_ on_, James," grumbled Sirius, his eyes closed. "When's your girlfriend gonna be here? I'm starving."

James rolled his eyes. "Sirius, you can't be starving. You said that ten minutes ago so I gave you an apple. You said it twenty minutes before that so Moony gave you his muffin. And breakfast was only two hours ago, anyway," James said. "Just wait, she'll be here soon."

"And what if she stood you up?" said Sirius. He knew she wouldn't stand James up, but he was hungry.

"She didn't," said James firmly, his eyebrows raising a little bit.

"Padfoot," said Remus. "If you're so bloody hungry, how about you go jump in the lake and catch us a few fish?" he teased.

Sirius's head shot up, eyebrows raised. "I'm so hungry that that actually doesn't sound like a bad idea," he said slowly.

James, Peter, and Remus burst out laughing at their freind's desperation for food. But Sirius stood up, took off his tie, kicked off his shoes, and began pulling off his robes.

"Er...Padfoot?" said Remus. "You know I wasn't serious, right?"

Sirius raised an eyebrow and looked at Remus seriously. "You may not be serious, Moony, but I'm Sirius. Therefore I am going to get some fish." They could make endless puns with Sirius's name versus his opposing attitude.

"Padfoot!" said James. "You don't even like fish!"

"So?" Sirius rolled his eyes. "I'm always up for a good swim."

And with that, he began pulling off his shirt.

"Er...am I interrupting something?" a voice from behind the gang spoke. They turned around, Sirius with his shirt pulled halfway over his head, and saw Lily standing there grinning, with quirked eyebrows.

Sirius finished pulling his shirt off. "Lily!" he hollered, even though she was standing a foot away. "There's our little Marauderette!"

Lily grinned, but rolled her eyes. "I'm not 'your little' anything, Sirius," she said.

"True," said James, standing up and walking towards Lily. "But, you are _my_little Freckles," he grinned, kissing Lily's cheek. The three other boys groaned.

"Get a room," said Peter.

"We could," replied James as Lily rolled her eyes again. "But then Padfoot would never get to eat."

"Stay here then!" said Sirius quickly, sitting back down and crossing his legs to look like a schoolboy.

James sat down against the tree again, and Lily took off her bag, sitting next to him.

"Sorry I'm so late," she said. "Overslept again, because SOMEONE," she continued with a pointed look at Peter "was in desperate need of James's assistance with his pajamas last night," she rolled her eyes and finished, "And so I had to do all the rounds alone."

"It's not my fault you guys are the Heads," mumbled Peter. "And it's also not my fault that Padfoot decided that my pajamas needed to expose more of my thighs and cut them. And it's _also_not my fault that James is the only one allowed to make a latenight Hogsmeade run to get me new pajamas."

They all laughed, and Sirius put his hand to his heart and bowed, grinning, as if he was proud of what he'd done.

"Anyway," said James, turning to Lily. "I can do the rounds alone tonight if you want."

"Nah," she said. "It's okay. I'm starving, what'd you guys bring from the kitchens?" she asked.

The boys had gotten up early that morning just to go down to the kitchens and have the elves prepare a lunch for them, then packed it all in a basket and told Lily to meet them for a picnic.

Remus opened the basket and took a look inside, pulling everything out.

"Well," he said. "We have sandwiches, steak, cake, cupcakes, Chocolate Frogs and Pumpkin Pasties, pie, croissants, burgers, and roast beef."

"And butterbeer!" Lily said, pulling five bottles out of her bag and holding them up.

The four boys cheered, and Sirius and James nearly tackled her to the ground when they gave her a bear hug at the same time.

"Lils!" Sirius exclaimed. "How did you get those?! We haven't been to Hogsmeade and ages, but if we did they closed down Rosmerta's because of the attacks, and they don't have them here!"

"Well," Lily beamed. "You learn a few things when your boyfriend's a Marauder," she nudged James in the side, and he grinned and put an arm around her.

"Attagirl!" he yelled. Lily grinned and ruffled his hair.

"So, Sirius," Lily said, looking at him. He was just about to dig into a piece of apple pie, but when he heard his name he raised his eyebrows and put the plate down.

"Yes, Lily dearest?" he said, batting his eyes.

"Are you planning on putting a shirt on anytime soon?" she asked.

Sirius just now seemed to realize he hadn't put his shirt back on. He looked down at his torso and merely shrugged, obviously not caring that the upper half of his body was exposed to everyone.

"Why should I?" He said. Then added in a deeper voice, wiggling his eyebrows, "You know you love it."

Lily nearly gagged, and sprayed out the butterbeer that was in her mouth, her eyes wide, a look of pure horror and disgust on her face.

"Sirius! I do not. You know what I do love, though?" she said. She reached into her bag and pulled out a silver tube that looked like a kaleidoscope, and threw it onto Sirius' lap.

Before he even had time to register what was happening, the silver tube started vibrating, then exploded and green goo went all over Sirius' chest and face.

Sirius looked down, then back up at Lily, horrified.

"LILY EVANS!" he screamed. "YOU JUST GOT GREEN GOO ON THE BEST LOOKING FACE AT HOGWARTS."

"Well," said James. "I don't know about that last part," he looked at Lily, who blushed.

Sirius rolled his eyes and wiped himself off with his shirt. "What is that even?" he asked Lily.

"A Splodeascope. James showed it to me last year at Hogsmeade," she beamed.

Sirius glared at James. James laughed and reached for Sirius' pie, which caused Sirius to snarl and swat James' hand away. By now, Remus was rolling on the floor laughing and Peter was almost in tears.

"Lily," gasped Remus when his laughing fit was over. "Lily, pass me a butterbeer."

Lily passed around the butterbeers which everyone drank happily.

After Peter drained his in three gulps, he passed around the rest of the food.

"So, Lily," smirked Remus. "James is always telling us how much fun doing the night patrols with you are. Right, Prongs?"

"They are pretty fun," said James.

"Mhmm. Now, Lilykins, please do inform us what exactly is so fun about walking around an empty castle at night," said Remus. "Or rather, what makes it do fun for him," he added, wiggling his brows.

"What do you mean?" asked Lily, obviously confused.

"Well, what are you doing during the patrols?" asked Remus.

"Patrolling," said Lily. "I still don't see what you-"

"Oh, Merlin's beard, are you snogging or not?!" blurted Sirius.

Lily and James both blushed bright red, which caused the boys to think that yes, they were, but really they were only embarrassed.

"And what would bring you to that odd assumption?" demanded James.

"Everything," cut in Peter with a mouthful of pie.

Lily's mouth was in a perfect "O".

"And how does 'everything' bring you to that, then?" asked James.

"Oh, relax James," Lily said. "We all know we are not snogging at night during the patrols, your mates are just trying to pair up other people because they can't get anyone themselves," she smirked.

James roared with laughter. Peter flushed red, and Remus threw a croissant at Lily, which missed and landed on the grass a few feet away. Sirius, though, stood up with a roar of defiance. "I'll have you know, Evans, I am one of the best-"

"Oh, can it, Padfoot," grinned James. Sirius sat down and ate the croissant that Remus had thrown.

They all finished eating in a matter of minutes, and all the food was gone.

Lily frowned. "You pigs," she muttered.

"Pig and proud," replied Peter with a wink. Sirius snorted.

"Oh, how cute," said a nasty snarl from behind Lily. They all whipped around, and a group of four Slytherin Death Eaters their age were behind them.

"Piss off, Avery," snarled Sirius.

"Defending the Mudblood, are we, Black? What would dear old mummy say?" retorted Mulciber. Lily flushed red.

Sirius, Remus, and James were on their feet with their wands out in the blink of an eye. Peter, trembling, hesitantly stood up after them.

James moved to stand in front of Lily. "You take that back, coward," he growled at Mulciber. Lily stood and put a hand on James' arm.

"James, it's not worth it for these blokes," she muttered to him. Her eyes scanned the boys... Avery, Mulciber, Dolohov, and Snape. Her heart sank a tiny bit when she saw her former best friend, who was pointedly avoiding eye contact.

"Get out of here," said Remus. "Go back to your Dark Lord."

"Fine," smirked Dolohov. "We will. See you when you're dead," he added to Lily.

James lunged forward, and Remus and Peter gripped his shoulders to hold him back. Sirius looked like he had half a mind to lunge after them with James.

As the Slytherins were walking away, Snape turned around and said "Sectumsempra!" over his shoulder. James yelped in pain, and the Slytherins ran away laughing.

The boys sat James down as Lily knelt over him. "James? Are you okay?" she asked.

He gritted his teeth and nodded his head.

"Where did it hit you?" she asked. He motioned to his forearm. Right where a Death Eater's Dark Mark would lie, a bright red cut was across James' arm.

"Oh, James," Lily said softly, staring at the deep, bloody injury.

"Do we need to take him to the hospital wing?" asked Sirius.

Lily shook her head. "I don't think so, no... no, I can fix this." She took out her wand, murmured a series of spells, and traced James' cut. It turned light pink, then the color of his skin, and all that was left was a thin white line.

James sighed in relief and looked up at his girlfriend. "Thanks, Lils," he said. She smiled in reply.

They resumed their picnic like nothing had happened, although Sirius looked outraged the entire time and kept glancing in the direction where the Death Eaters departed.

"They are so stupid," he finally said.

"We know, Padfoot," was Remus' response.

Sirius huffed. "You know what? This is kind of silly and obvious, I know, but right now, as friends let's all promise we'll never ever side with You-Know-Who," he said to his friends. "Agreed?"

"Agreed," they all chimed in unison.

"Good," Sirius said. His friends knew why he was so worked up about it- his family supported the Voldemort.

"And you're sure you're okay, James?" Peter said.

"Yeah, I'm fine, thanks to my amazing girlfriend," he grinned. Lily kissed him on the cheek.

"I can't believe he would do that," Lily said, disgusted. They all knew she was talking about Snape.

"I can," said James. "I mean, face it Lil, you were best friends until you started hanging out with us, and now I have you," he explained, putting an arm around Lily.

The sun was setting against the school now, almost dipping below the gleaming lake horizon.

"We should get going," Lily said, and they packed up their picnic.

"Let's go," James said, taking her hand and walking behind the rest of the boys, who were a few feet ahead.

They soon got to their Heads' dorm in Gryffindor tower, and changed for bed. Lily sat in the seating room, waiting for James to emerge from his own room when he was done.

"Hey," he said softly when he came out, running a hand through his hair.

"Hi," Lily replied as he sa down next to her. She leaned her head on his shoulder.

"So, fun picnic today, huh?" he asked. Lily nodded.

"Yeah," she smiled. "Yeah, we should do that again sometime."

"Of course," James said through a yawn. "We should go to bed now."  
He stood up and offered a hand to Lily, and she stood up too.

"Goodnight, Jamie," mumbled Lily sleepily, departing to her room.

"Nrgh Lul," mumbled James back as he entered his, too tired to even form words.

Before James fell asleep, he remembered the perfect day with his best friends and girlfriend. Well, almost perfect. The Slytherins just had to come and ruin it, didn't they? He was glad, deep down, that Sirius made them all promise they would never join You-Know-Who.

And in the years to come, all of them kept that promise; all of them except for one.

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**DUN, DUN, DUUUUNNNN.**

**Well, after that happy note, review please! :) **


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